Summer Movie Preview: 'Wonder Woman,' 'Spider-Man' and more

Thursday

Apr 27, 2017 at 3:00 PMApr 27, 2017 at 4:23 PM

By Al AlexanderFor The Patriot Ledger

They say familiarity breeds contempt. So perhaps that’s why I’m depressed by a summer-movie season dominated by remakes, reboots and sequels. By my count, 13 of the 18 weeks between now and Labor Day, will feature something old presented as new – from “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” next Friday to the critically shelled “Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature” on Aug. 11. Even more disheartening is the fact that most of this collection of re-dos and exponents are rooted in franchises that have long since lost the luster of their originals. I’m thinking of “Transformers 5,” “Despicable Me 3,” “Pirates of the Caribbean 5,” “Diary of a Wimpy Kid 4,” “Alien 5 (or is it 6?)” and “Cars 3.” Even old friend Al Gore is crashing the sequel party with “An Inconvenient Truth 2.” Al Gore? Yes, Al Gore, and this is one recount I hope – but doubt – he will win. But not to fear, folks, there are also some very promising originals on the slate, two of which – Christopher Nolan’s World War II drama “Dunkirk” and Kathryn Bigelow’s “Detroit” – dramatize major historical events. There are even a couple remakes I’m actually intrigued by in “The Mummy” starring Tom Cruise, and Sofia Coppola’s sexed-up redo of the old Civil War chestnut, “The Beguiled,” starring Nicole Kidman.

Per usual, the summer’s coolest movies can be found – with some effort – in the smattering of art houses across the Hub. Me, I’m excited about “The Survivalist,” “Wakefield,” “I, Daniel Blake,” “Maudie,” “Menashe,” “Step” and – oh, my! – a sequel – yes, a sequel – in “The Trip to Spain.” And what would summer be without an array of superheroes. This year it’s the debuts of the reworked “Wonder Woman” and “Spider-Man” franchises. And I have to admit to being intrigued by the long-gestating “The Dark Tower,” the ambitious film version of Stephen King’s eight-volume tome about an alternate universe where our protagonist, The Gunslinger, is apt to bump into characters from “The Stand” and “The Shining.” What could be cooler on a hot August day? To borrow another chilly metaphor, these films are just the tip of the iceberg in a summer loaded with choices, from animated flicks to documentaries to mind-numbing comedies. Like, who would ever imagine Amy Schumer playing Goldie Hawn’s daughter in “Snatched”? There’s a lot more where that craziness came from in the titles listed here. But, as always, these dates are subject to change. And some, which I’ve noted, only have firm opening dates in New York and Los Angeles before landing in Boston later in the summer. So let’s get going, beginning with:

May 5

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2: The old gang is back in space for another adventure written and directed by James Gunn. Chris Pratt stars.

The Dinner: Richard Gere, Laura Linney, Rebecca Hall and Steve Coogan make an intriguing ensemble in co-writer-director Oren Moverman’s adaptation of a best-selling novel about two sets of parents meeting for dinner to discuss strategy after they learn their sons are involved in a violent crime.

Jeremiah Tower: The Last Magnificent: Director Lydia Tenaglia profiles former Chez Panisse chef Jeremiah Tower as he attempts to rise from ashes of his failed San Francisco restaurant, Stars.

Burden: (NY/LA, Boston TBD) Directors Timothy Marrinan and Richard Dewey profile eccentric artist Chris Burden, who ill-advisedly has subjected himself to being shot, electrocuted and crucified on a VW.

May 12

King Arthur: Legend of the Sword: Guy Ritchie attempts to cram a lot into Camelot with his action-packed version of how King Arthur (Charlie Hunnam) yanked a sword from a stone and gained his fleeting 15 minutes of fame. Jude Law co-stars.

Snatched: Faster than you can say “road trip,” Amy Schumer and Goldie Hawn hook up for a mother-daughter adventure in South America, a vacation that lands them calamitously in the Amazon jungle. Wanda Sykes and Joan Cusack co-star.

The Lovers: Debra Winger and Tracy Letts team to play an estranged married couple reigniting their marriage’s faded spark by – ironically – cheating on their lovers.

Chuck: Liev Schreiber is a real-life Rocky Balboa as he dons boxing gloves to play New Jersey liquor salesman Chuck Wepner, who went 15 rounds with Muhammad Ali in 1975 – and lived to tell about it. Elisabeth Moss and Naomi Watts costar.

The Wall: Director Doug Liman (“The Bourne Identity”) pairs Golden Globe-winner Aaron Taylor Johnson (“Nocturnal Animals”) with wrestling hunk John Cena (“Trainwreck”) to play U.S. soldiers engaged in a deadly cat-and-mouse game with an Iraqi sniper.

3 Generations: Perhaps playing off the success of “Transparent,” Elle Fanning stars in what could be called “Transchild,” as she makes the transformation from girl to boy, much to the chagrin of her mother (Naomi Watts). But Grandma (Susan Sarandon), a lesbian, is fully behind the teen’s commitment.

Lowriders: In this indie drama, a young tattoo artist opts to enter into his family’s car-customizing business. But his gangster brother threatens to paint all over his budding dreams.

May 19

Alien: Covenant Coming off his biggest hit, “The Martian,” Ridley Scott launches back into space to revisit an old friend from the 1970s. In the reboot, the plot remains pretty much the same as the first “Alien,” which is depressing. But we shall see. Michael Fassbender stars.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul The fourth installment in the critically panned series finds Greg (Jason Drucker taking over for Zachary Gordon) causing mayhem as the family takes an eventful road trip to attend Meemaw’s 90th birthday party.

Everything, Everything: Remember “The Boy in the Plastic Bubble”? And remember how “Seinfeld” mercilessly poked fun at it? Apparently, the makers of this schlock didn’t; or, worse, did and thought by simply replacing a young John Travolta with a pretty girl (Amandla Stenberg) they could fool the masses. Not bloody likely.

The Survivalist: Stephen Fingleton’s acclaimed film finally washes ashore with Martin McCann playing a survivalist whose loner life is interrupted by a starving mother who offers up her pretty teenage daughter in exchange for food. He accepts at his own peril. But it’s another male intruder who poses the larger threat.

The Wedding Plan: Writer-director Rama Burshtein follows up her arthouse hit “Filling the Void” with a broad comedy about a jilted Orthodox Jewish woman (Noa Kooler) rushing to find a replacement groom in time to keep her original wedding date.

The Commune: (NY/LA, Boston TBD) Oscar-winner Thomas Vinterberg (“The Celebration”) attempts to top his Oscar-nominated “The Hunt” with a 1970s-set tale about his native Denmark as seen through the eyes of a married couple turning their home into a commune. But living together doesn’t mean they’ll all stay together.

May 26

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales: With the way Johnny Depp’s career has been sinking, how long can the Black Pearl – or more to the point, this listing franchise – stay afloat? I doubt it will be long, but with Javier Bardem playing the villain, and a new director in Joachim Ronning (“Bandidas”), there’s a slight chance for survival.

Baywatch: Challenging “CHiPs” as the year’s worst movie based on a TV show is this waterlogged entry starring the The Rock and Zac Efron in bright-red Speedos. Somewhere, David Hasselhoff and Pamela Anderson are rolling over in their acting graves.

Paris Can Wait: At age 81, Francis Ford Coppola’s wife, Eleanor, tries her hand at directing, guiding Diane Lane, Arnaud Viard and Alec Baldwin through a tale of a broken Hollywood marriage put to the test when the wife travels to France with her husband’s associate.

June 2

Wonder Woman: Judging by the film’s lukewarm trailers, this one looks more like “Blunder Woman.” And unlike most fanboys, I’m not sold on Gal Gadot. She’s bland, wooden and let’s face it, she’s no Lynda Carter.

Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie: Dav Pilkey’s cleverly illustrated books are already a hit with the kiddos. But will the young’uns go for an animated version of their two prepubescent heroes plotting to hypnotize their principal and turn him into an underwear clad superhero? Count on it!

Dean: Yet another indie about a lost soul dealing with death, parental estrangement and existential crisis. The only thing separating it from all the others is that this one was written, directed and stars comedian Demetri Martin – doing his best Zach Braff. Kevin Kline co-stars.

I, Daniel Blake: Last year’s Cannes winner finally arrives after much too much delay. And it’s a beauty; a terrific meditation on the marginalization of the sick and the poor, as seen through the frustrated eyes of a disabled blue-collar worker (Dave Johns, fantastic) who just wants to be treated as kindly as he treats others, including an immigrant mother worse off than him.

Band Aid: Writer-director Zoe Lister-Jones stars as one half of a bickering couple that tries to save their marriage by indulging in the only thing they agree on – music. So they form a band with their goofy neighbor (“Portlandia’s” Fred Armisen).

Wakefield: (NY/LA, Boston TBD) In an adaptation of a E.L. Doctorow’s short story, director Robin Swicord tells the offbeat story of a “disappeared” husband (Bryan Cranston) who is secretly hiding out in his garage attic observing the everyday lives of his wife (Jennifer Garner), kids and neighbors.

June 9

The Mummy: Tom Cruise tries to breathe life back into a long-dead franchise by playing an archaeologist who unwraps a whole bunch of evil when he enters the tomb of a vindictive spirit (Sofia Boutella) who follows him back to London. Alex Kurtzman directs.

It Comes at Night: Trey Edward Shults follows up his much-praised indie “Krisha” with a more conventional horror story about the evil spirit residing inside a family man (Joel Edgerton) whose increasingly perverse thoughts are leading him to murder.

Beatriz at Dinner: (NY/LA, Boston TBD) Director Miguel Arteta (“Cedar Rapids”) couldn’t be timelier with his comedy about a successful, business-building Mexican immigrant (Salma Hayek) who crosses paths with an arrogant, blusterous billionaire (Remind you of anyone?) played with haughty gusto by John Lithgow.

The B-Side: It’s always cause for celebration when the Pride of Cambridge, Errol Morris, is offering a new documentary – this one about legendary Boston photographer Elsa Dorfman.

My Cousin Rachel: A naive young man (Sam Claflin) falls in love with the cousin (Rachel Weisz) he believes murdered his guardian.

I Love You Both: (NY/LA, Boston TBD) Twenty-something twins (one male; one female) clash after they fall in love with the same guy. Stars Doug and Kristin Archibald also co-wrote the script.

June 16

Cars 3: Remember when Pixar made wildly original, money-minting animations that won critical praise as well as cash? All damaged when a parasitic Mouse gave the studio a potentially terminal case of sequelitis. Exhibit A is this money-grab, reviving its least popular franchise with a movie that had little demand.

All Eyez on Me: Tupac Shakur (Demetrius Shipp Jr.) gets the biopic treatment courtesy of director Benny Boom, who chronicles the ill-fated rapper’s rise from poverty to international superstar – until it all ended at age 25 on the wrong end of a gun in Las Vegas.

Rough Night: Lucia Aniello copies the “Bridesmaids” template to the T, sending five longtime friends to Miami for a wild bachelorette party that ends with the death of a male stripper. Scarlett Johansson, Kate McKinnon, Jillian Bell, Ilana Glazer and Zoë Kravitz star.

The Book of Henry: Naomi Watts reunites with her “Shut In” co-star, Jacob Tremblay, for a family drama about a single mom whose eldest son (Jaeden Lieberher) comes to the rescue of a neighbor girl (Maddie Ziegler) being abused by her police chief stepfather (“Breaking Bad’s” Dean Norris). Colin Trevorrow directs.

Maudie: (NY/LA, Boston TBD) After leading a sheltered life because of her hunched back and crippled hands, a maid (Sally Hawkins) and her employer (Ethan Hawke) fall in love, a relationship that inspires her to evolve into celebrated Canadian folk painter Maud Lewis.

The Hero: In a bit of perfect casting, Sam Elliott plays an aging Western movie star packing a cancer diagnosis and a need to make amends with his estranged daughter (Krysten Ritter). Brett Haley (“I’ll See You in My Dreams”) directs.

47 Meters Down: Mandy Moore and Claire Holt unwittingly find themselves in a cage match with a school of sharks after their diving apparatus becomes untethered and sinks to the bottom. If they stay in the cage they die; if they leave, they’re shark meat. What to do?

Once Upon a Time in Venice: In a comedy that sounds an awful lot like 2016’s “Keanu,” Bruce Willis plays a Los Angeles P.I. who gets mixed up with gangsters after his beloved pet disappears.

June 23

Transformers: The Last Knight: Mark Wahlberg is back to inflict more damage on his reputation by starring in yet another of these useless Michael Bay exercises about toys trying to rule the world. Anthony Hopkins (Anthony Hopkins???) co-stars.

The Journey: As partisanship rips apart our own country, nothing could be timelier than this retelling of how an IRA rep (Colm Meaney) and a staunch British conservative (Timothy Spall) put aside their differences by engaging in a committed bid for peace while driving across Scotland. The late John Hurt co-stars.

Landline: (NY/LA, Boston TBD) Milton native Jenny Slate reteams with her “Obvious Child” director, Gillian Robespierre, for a dramatic comedy about sisters suspecting their father (John Turturro) of having an affair.

The Big Sick: Comedian Kumail Nanjiani plays himself in telling the true story of his challenging courtship with his American wife (Zoe Kazan), a relationship that riles his Pakistani parents who believe in arranged unions. Michael Showalter (“Hello, My Name Is Doris”) directs a cast that also includes Holly Hunter and Ray Romano.

June 28

Baby Driver: Edgar Wright (“Shaun of the Dead”) wrote and directs this more cerebral version of “The Fast and the Furious” about a getaway driver (Ansel Elgort) who tries to go straight after meeting a beautiful girl (Lily James). But his crime boss don (Kevin Spacey) has other ideas.

June 30

Despicable Me: 3 Gru (voice of Steve Carell) meets his match in his even more obnoxious twin brother, Dru. But both face an even bigger threat from a deranged ex-child star in Balthazar Bratt (Trey Parker).

The House: Will Ferrell teams with old chum Amy Poehler for a high-concept comedy about parents trying to replenish the money they took from their daughter’s college fund by – how else? –opening a casino in their suburban home’s basement.

The Beguiled: Sofia Coppola adapts Thomas Cullinan’s Civil War novel about what happens when sexually frustrated females at a cloistered boarding school take in a wounded Confederate soldier (Colin Farrell) and commence to fight over winning his affections. Nicole Kidman, Kirsten Dunst and Elle Fanning co-star.

The Bad Batch: A young woman (Suki Waterhouse) fights for survival after she’s kidnapped by a band of cannibals in the latest offering of horror from writer-director Ana Lily Amirpour (“A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night”). Bon appetite!

Darkness Rising: In search of closure, a woman (Katrina Law) returns to the house where her mother murdered her sister. But once there, the same evil spirit that possessed her mom seems to be after her.

Amityville: The Awakening: It’s more of the same in this overdone franchise about living in a haunted house. Jennifer Jason Leigh stars.

July 7

Spider-Man: Homecoming: Tom Holland provided a great tease as the new Spidey in last year’s “Captain America: Civil War.” Now he’s ready to fly solo – literally. And if he falls, it looks like he’ll have Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark around to catch him, as they throw down with the evil Vulture (Michael Keaton). Jon Watts (“Cop Car”) directs.

Patti Cake$: One of the more polarizing films at January’s Sundance festival was Geremy Jasper’s offbeat tale about a white, obese female rapper (Danielle Macdonald) battling the haters while chasing her music dream in dreary Lodi, N.J.

July 14

War for the Planet of the Apes: In the third of the acclaimed “Apes” movies, Caesar (Andy Serkis doing his motion-capture thing) wages war with yet another band of ornery humans, led this time by Woody Harrelson. Matt Reeves (“10 Cloverfield Lane”) directs.

A Ghost Story: Casey Affleck won an Oscar playing a ghost of a man in “Manchester by the Sea.” Now he plays an actual ghost trying to connect spiritually with his widow (Rooney Mara) in this Sundance hit reuniting the two actors with their “Ain’t Them Bodies Saints” director, David Lowery (“Pete’s Dragon”).

City of Ghosts: Matthew Heineman follows up his acclaimed “Cartel Land” with another topical documentary, this one about a group of brave Syrian citizens banding together to take a stand against ISIS.

Wish Upon: A marginalized teenager (Joey King) wishes upon a magic music box all she wants most. But the booty comes at a cost, as the people close to her begin dying off one by one after each wish is granted.

Lady Macbeth: (NY/LA, Boston TBD) William Oldroyd presents a bastardized retelling of Shakespeare’s tale of the lady with the bloody hands, moving the story to 1865 England, where a wife (Florence Pugh) stifled by a loveless marriage violently rebels to get what she wants.

July 21

Dunkirk: After years dabbling in sci-fi and comic-book movies, Christopher Nolan gets real with his bloody re-enactment of the World War II Battle of Dunkirk, in which hundreds of thousands of British and Allied troops were forced to evacuate after being pushed to the sea by rapidly advancing Nazi forces. And what a cast – Tom Hardy, Mark Rylance, Kenneth Branagh, Cillian Murphy and One Direction heartthrob Harry Styles.

Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets: Still beaming from the surprise success of “Lucy,” Luc Besson offers up another action-packed fantasy that brings to life the influential comic book about 28th-century operatives (Dane DeHaan and Cara Delevingne) flushing out dark elements threatening to undermine the utopian city of Alpha.

An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power: Al Gore returns to his bully pulpit to remind the sleeping masses that every time we fire up our gas lawnmowers and giant SUVs we’re slowly killing off the human race. Not that the members of the bubble-dwelling GOP care. Bonni Cohen and Jon Shenk take over directing duties from Oscar-winner Davis Guggenheim.

Menashe: There’s buzz aplenty for Joshua Weinstein’s deeply authentic tale of a Jewish father’s fight to retain custody of his son. And what makes it so real is that everything in the film really happened to star Menashe Lustig. Weinstein ups the ante more by filming it guerilla-style by sneaking into actual Jewish institutions in Brooklyn where cameras are not allowed. Oh, and did I mention it’s the first movie in 70 years to be made entirely in Yiddish?

The Emoji Movie: If you thought it stupid to make movies culled from video games and toys, hold your breath, because this one is about those annoying cell phone icons. Worse, it features the voice of the comedically challenged T.J. Miller.

Atomic Blonde: Director David Leitch attempts to bring the same high-octane action he did to “John Wick” in mounting a thriller about an MI6 counterintelligence operation aimed at busting an espionage ring in the wake of the fall of the Berlin Wall. Charlize Theron stars as the title character. James McAvoy co-stars.

From the Land of the Moon: You can’t keep Marion Cotillard down, nor her recalcitrant character in Nicole Garcia’s adaptation of Milena Agus’ best-seller about a free-spirited woman trapped in a loveless marriage. At least she is until a hunky French soldier comes along.

Brigsby Bear: (NY/LA, Boston TBD) “SNL’s” Kyle Mooney co-wrote and stars in a comedy about an overly sheltered kid’s show producer who goes a bit batty after his program is cancelled. Claire Danes and Mark Hamill co-star.

Person to Person: (NY/LA, Boston TBD) Over the course of a day, a cross section of New Yorkers deal with tangled personal and romantic relationships. Michael Cera, Abbi Jacobson and Philip Baker Hall star.

Aug. 4

The Dark Tower: Nicolaj Arcel co-wrote and directs the first of a planned trilogy based on an eight-volume series from Stephen King about a gunslinger (Idris Elba) searching for an elusive tower in an alternate dimension filled with many of King’s iconic characters from past novels. Matthew McConaughey co-stars in a series that, a la Marvel, will also expand to TV.

Detroit: The unbeatable Oscar-winning team of director Kathryn Bigelow and writer Mark Boal (“Zero Dark Thirty”) go deep with their take on America’s deadliest race riot. It occurred in the Motor City in the summer of 1967, a disturbance exacerbated by Gov. George (father of Mitt) Romney responding with force instead of understanding. “Star Wars hunk John Boyega stars.

Step: Amanda Lipitz wowed the Sundance crowd with her moving documentary about a high school step-dance team in Baltimore striving to reach their goals amid violent unrest occurring just outside their doors in April 2015.

Wind River: (NY/LA, Boston TBD) Taylor Sheridan follows his Oscar nomination for “Hell or High Water” with another socially minded thriller. This one about a game tracker (Jeremy Renner) teaming with a rookie FBI agent (Elizabeth Olsen) to solve the murder of a Native American girl.

Aug. 11

Annabelle: Creation: In the sequel to “Annabelle,” the dead girl’s parents provide shelter to a nun and her female charges. They check in, but will the visitors ever leave? It’s doubtful; or at least not in one piece.

Ingrid Goes West: Aubrey Plaza’s budding stalker travels to Los Angeles to force herself into the life of her hero, an Instagram lifestyle guru (Elizabeth Olsen) with a brother who is onto his sister’s new friend. Matt (no relation to Sean) Spicer directs.

The Trip to Spain: Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon (“The Trip”) are back for a third journey of dining, sightseeing and biting banter as they travel by car through Spain. Michael Winterbottom directs.

The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature: Did anyone really want to see a sequel to a movie that scored a lowly 10 on Rotten Tomatoes in 2014? Well, for the dozen or so of you who answered, yes, here it is. Will Arnett, Katherine Heigl and Maya Rudolph top the list of voice talent.

The Only Living Boy in New York: (NY/LA, Boston TBD) Director Marc Webb (“Gifted”) continues a busy year with this “Graduate”-lite entry about a young New Yorker (Callum Turner) who collects a diploma and his father’s mistress (Kate Beckinsale) lickety-split. Pierce Brosnan, Kiersey Clemons, Cynthia Nixon and Jeff Bridges co-star.

Whose Streets: (NY/LA, Boston TBD) Directors Sabaah Folayan and Damon Davis take an in-depth look at the riots that wreaked havoc on the streets of Ferguson, Mo., following the police shooting of teenager Michael Brown.

Aug. 18

The Hitman’s Bodyguard: It’s hard to believe Samuel L. Jackson would ever need a bodyguard – even snakes on a plane fear him! But if his hitman character really did need protection, wouldn’t he want someone more intimidating than Ryan Reynolds? Methinks the roles should have been reversed.

The Unknown Girl: Belgium’s Dardenne brothers (“Two Days, One Night”) are rumored to have slipped a bit below their auteur standards with their latest – a story about a young doctor obsessed with the girl she refused to treat only hours before the patient turns up dead.

Lemon: (NY/LA, Boston TBD) Comedian Brett Gelman co-wrote and stars in a familiar story of a sad sack whose love life, career and family are crapping out on him. Judy Greer, Michael Cera and Nia Long (co-star).

Aug. 25

The Life and Death of John Gotti: John Travolta plays the infamous New York mob boss, who’s dealing with the twin problems of an FBI probe and his beloved son, John Jr., turning his back on the family business.

All Saints: John Corbett gets some religion as salesman-turned-pastor Micheal Spurlock, who raises fire and brimstone to protect a group of Southeast Asian refugees.

Polaroid: Ripping off the classic “Twilight Zone” episode, “A Most Unusual Camera,” director Lars Klevberg tells of how a teenager finds an old Polaroid that spells death for whoever ends up in its viewfinder.

Villa Capri: The dream teaming of Morgan Freeman and Tommy Lee Jones finds the actors playing anti-Mafia crusaders risking their witness-protection status when they learn of a planned mob hit. Ron Shelton (“Bull Durham”) wrote and directs.

Tulip Fever: (NY/LA, Boston TBD) Oscar-winners Alicia Vikander, Christoph Waltz and Judi Dench star in a period dramedy penned by Tom Stoppard (“Shakespeare in Love”) about a 17th-century artist (Dane DeHaan) and his lover (Vikander) using the sale of tulip bulbs to finance their getaway from the woman’s abusive husband (Waltz).

Aug. 30

Leap! (NY/LA, Boston TBD) True to its title, this animated offering from directors Eric Summer and Eric Warin has been jumping all over the release schedule. Assuming it indeed opens, expect to see a young girl (voice of Elle Fanning) chasing her dreams of becoming a ballerina in France.

Sept. 1

Renegades: Oscar-winner J.K. Simmons scores top-billing in Steven Quale’s “Three Kings” rip-off about Navy SEALs finding a pile of gold while on assignment in Europe. Do they keep it; or do they return it to the rightful owners? Do we really need to ask?